


Quick Study (and other Ereri tales)

by Ketita



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Beaches, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Gen, Insomnia, M/M, One Shot Collection, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, mostly canonverse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-02
Updated: 2015-11-04
Packaged: 2018-01-14 07:30:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1258045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ketita/pseuds/Ketita
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Things don't come to Eren naturally, so he watches and learns. This time Levi is the subject at hand.</p><p>(A collection of Ereri oneshots. Featuring cuddling, tea, and more!)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Quick Study

**Author's Note:**

> Originally a oneshot, but I decided to update this fic with other Ereri drabbles I've written. Some are by request (which I do get around to.... slowly...) and some are just little fics that don't quite justify their own post, imo. So this'll be a ficlet collection! Hope you guys enjoy :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for xxbakacoconutxx, who asked (ages ago!) for something involving ereri and cuddles.

Eren is a learner. Things don't come to him easily, he doesn't just get stuff right like Mikasa or have stores of knowledge like Armin. And now he's in a new squad with new people, and most importantly Captain Levi whom he doesn't quite know what to do with – so he watches, and he learns.

He sees that despite the recent beating that he can still sort of feel if he thinks about it, there might not be a reason to truly fear Levi, because nobody else does. They stand straighter when he comes close, true, but they smile as they do it. They look proud when Levi nods at them.

Eren learns during training that "do it again" means "good", and that a short nod means outstanding excellence. Silence is acceptable, and mistakes will be reprimanded with blunt explanations as to what was done wrong. Levi will stand close, then, glowering, his full attention on the hapless soldier getting a scolding, and analyze what went wrong until the soldier proves themselves capable of doing it right.

It happened to Eren once, as he was forced, squirming with embarrassment, to listen to a tirade about how he was holding the blades wrong, releasing hooks at the wrong time and wrong angle – but when Eren tried again, he realized that understanding what was _wrong_ made it possible for him to do it _right_. He earned a nod and a curt 'do it again', and later found himself standing straighter and saluting with a proud smile on his face, same as the others.

Eren learns from Petra how Levi likes his tea, from Gunter how to launder clothes properly, proper floor washing technique from Auruo, and from Erd, the tone of voice to use when you wanted something from Levi.

From all of them, he learns that the captain is not to be touched.

Of course, it makes sense, Eren thinks, and becomes as careful as they are. He passes things to Levi with only the barest meeting of fingers, and is careful to avoid his clothes and rubbing shoulders with him in the corridor. Dinner is easy, as Levi sits at the head of the table and won't be brushed against, but any other time, Eren knows to leave at least ten centimeters distance.

The fact that the captain asks for none of it makes Eren try all the harder.

Eren never questions the things he's learned, because they make life in the castle smooth and easy, until one night. He's finished his chores and it's not yet time to sleep, so he's sitting in one of the small downstairs rooms because it's heated and set up with all the sofas they found that were in decent repair. The room is cozy and the light is good, so Eren's perched on the softest couch, which is placed against the wall directly under a lamp. It's a favorite place for reading, but right now Eren is mending the sleeve on his uniform.

The door opens and closes with only the slightest creak, and it takes Eren a few seconds to look up and see who it is because he wants to finish the row. The sofa beside him sinks and Eren glances out of the corner of his eye and then jumps because _it's the captain_.

The captain doesn't say anything, just nods a small greeting at Eren before opening the book he's brought. Of course he would sit here, Eren thinks, it's the most comfortable and the light is the best – but the sofa is small, forcing their thighs to touch and their elbows to rub together, so now Eren is invading the proscribed ten centimeters.

Hurriedly, he ties off the stitch and stands.

"You-" the captain says, then stops.

"Can I do something for you?" Eren asks, eager to prove himself. Levi's expression certainly says he's not pleased, another thing Eren has learned to recognize during his time with the squad.

Levi shifts on the sofa, scoots further towards the other arm, then flicks his eyes at the empty space. "You don't have to leave," he says.

Eren stands and stares, at that empty spot and at his captain, and doesn't know what to think. He must have stared too long, because Levi clears his throat and opens his book pointedly, hunching over it.

"That wasn't an order," he said. "You can do whatever you want. You don't have to stay. Go take a shit or something."

Levi never asks for things, Eren thinks, but you'd have to be an idiot not to understand that one. So he smiles sunnily and strolls back over, flops down on the sofa next to his captain. They're pressed together now, thigh to thigh and so close that Levi can't turn pages without brushing Eren. So close that Eren can feel how relaxed Levi is against him. He's warm, Eren thinks, and very human, and maybe everybody is wrong. Maybe Levi doesn't want to keep a ten centimeter wall of nothing between him and the world.

Eren's a learner. So he doesn't move away, not even when Levi falls asleep and his dark head droops against Eren's shoulder, but instead shifts around so he'll be more comfortable, and wraps his right arm carefully around his captain's shoulders.

When Levi doesn't object, just sighs and leans closer, Eren learns that everybody else is wrong. Their captain loves being touched.


	2. Sleepless Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sleepy cuddles and Eren taking care of Levi, for a change.

Thin moonlight illuminated the room through Levi’s partially open window, though the moon itself was invisible from where Eren lay. By the depth of the darkness he could tell that it was still a few hours before dawn; night after night of waking from nightmares and waiting for the sun to rise had taught him to gauge the blackness that pooled in the corners of the room and clung to the ceiling.

He knew the myriad colors of black by heart, the fuzziness of the shadowed room, the twinkling deeps of the sky outside, the spill of Levi’s hair, liquid coal against pale skin. He knew the ethereality of Levi’s skin in bright moonlight, and its grey ghostlike pallor when the darkness of night was absolute. Sleepless night after sleepless night he’d memorized Levi’s features until they never looked alien, no matter the lighting. He knew Levi’s waking expressions of dry contempt, of annoyance, of neutral disinterest – the ones everybody saw. Yet he knew the private expressions too, how Levi’s eyes looked heavy-lidded with pleasure, the softness of his mouth after a kiss. But most precious were the expressions Levi himself did not know – how his jaw relaxed in sleep and lips parted gently, how the wrinkles in his forehead smoothed out until Eren could almost imagine that Levi wasn’t so much older than he was.

Eren sighed, breath shallow because of the weight on his chest. From here, he couldn’t see Levi’s face without some drastic wriggling, and that would wake Levi up, and then maybe Levi wouldn’t want to sleep like this anymore, with his head on Eren’s chest and arms around him. Eren had campaigned too long and hard for this to risk it just for the pleasure of seeing Levi’s face. Instead, he ran his hands up Levi’s powerful back, soft and clean from their shower a few hours earlier, the scent of soap still present underneath his natural musk. He traced Levi’s spine up to the bumps on the back of his neck and lingered there, thinking of death.

Thinking of how for him, death wasn’t a matter of being pierced through the heart. Hearts were human things. Hearts were warmth and love and joy, but what was the back of the neck? Nobody fought for the back of somebody’s neck. There was nothing poetic about a broken neck, and no way to mend one. ( _he remembered a phantom touch on his nape, Levi’s lips and tongue, his fingers curving around in a way that should have felt threatening but felt like protection instead, a frail shield of flesh and bone against the world. He knew this was why Levi liked sleeping curled against his back, shielding Eren’s neck with his body.)_

Thinking of Levi who was so strong yet so human, who could die like anybody else and vanish from Eren’s life, fade into the moonlight forever. So many ways a human could die, so he lay awake and worried about that. Other nights he worried about his friends, his comrades, humanity – but tonight, he thought of Levi and ran his hands back down over his shoulders to count his ribs, thinking of the way Levi picked at his dinner, of how for a few nights in a row they’d slept apart and Levi’d spent the days with dark bags under his eyes.

He couldn’t force Levi to eat or take away his worries, not when Eren himself was sick with nerves most of the time, but he could do this: cajole Levi into bed, wear him out and hold him close as he slept.

Eren hadn’t realized it at first, how carefully Levi’s Special Operations Squad had protected their captain, until now when nobody was left. No one to prod him into eating or sleeping or spending time with the group, to set aside his paperwork and relax, not to push his body to train beyond its capacity.

Eren would protect Levi from everything as best as he could, but he didn’t know how to protect Levi from the darkness in his mind.

His breath hitched.

“Eren?” Levi asked sleepily, voice rough and soft, rumbling in his chest where it was pressed against Eren’s ribcage.

“It’s nothing,” Eren murmured back. He tightened his arms around Levi’s back to try and keep him from lifting his head. It was _his_ turn to take care of Levi, dammit. During waking hours it was always Levi watching out for him.

Levi pushed up on his elbows, too strong for Eren to hold down without it turning into a fight. He frowned into Eren’s face, clearly trying to gather his scattered thoughts. He blinked heavily, eyelids dragging as he fought exhaustion because he thought Eren needed him.

“It’s nothing,” Eren repeated, and ran a hand up into Levi’s messy hair, cradled his jaw. Levi’s head lolled against Eren’s palm, eyes sliding out of focus once more. He mumbled something else and then allowed Eren to pull him back down, letting out a warm exhalation before stilling into sleep once more.

Levi probably wouldn’t even remember waking up, tomorrow, Eren thought. Levi might be older than him, might have seen things Eren couldn’t imagine and been losing people for longer than Eren was alive, but there were parts of Levi that only Eren knew. And if (when) Eren died, those parts would be lost forever.

The steady rhythm of Levi’s breaths lulled him, making Eren sink back into his pillow. Strength left his arms, no longer clinging to Levi, but resting on his back, palms open. He wondered, as he nodded off, what parts of him were stored safely somewhere in Levi’s heart.


	3. a day in another world

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their eyes meet across a crowded room. For anybody but Levi, he might have headed in the opposite direction and pretended he hadn't noticed.

Their eyes meet across a crowded room. It's but a flash: of hair, the way he walks, familiar eyes too far to see the color of (which Eren's mind supplies readily). Even though it's only a moment and logic dictates that among the hordes crowding this museum the dark-haired man across the hall and halfway up the stairs could be anybody at all, Eren is _sure_. Before he knows what he's doing he moves forward, threading his way around people and trying not to pass between them and the paintings too much.

Briefly, he considers pretending he hasn't noticed and heading in the other direction. For almost anybody but Levi, he just might have. But Levi is moving towards him through the crowds as well, so Eren continues –

And then they're standing face to face, in an odd bubble of momentary silence deeper than the general quiet of the gallery. Levi tilts his head in invitation, the same jerk that had always meant 'walk with me' in a previous life, and Eren falls in without question.

They exit onto a terrace where they can talk in peace, uninterrupted. It's convenient with its lack of people; the only drawback is the tiny patch of shade that does little to hide them from the Italian sun. Nonetheless, they sit down on the corner of the bench that manages to be shaded by the building, and bake.

Levi is different. This doesn't surprise Eren. What surprises him more is that they managed to meet at all, in such a crowded place in this crowded world. But Levi looks good. He seems a bit taller than Eren remembers him, and the lines on his face are different, accentuating laughter rather than pain. He looks vaguely East Asian of some sort, and Eren wonders if he had always looked that way or it's just that now Eren has a name for the variations in human faces in large groups.

"Do you speak English?" Levi asks with an accent Eren doesn't quite place.

"Yes." Eren laughs, because it would have been hilarious if they had found each other and not even been able to say hello. He remembers their previous life, but not the language they spoke.

Levi flashes a small smile, easy, and pulls out his cellphone. "I am telling to my family I will be late," he says, and quickly taps at it.

The words send a tiny twinge of jealousy through Eren, but small enough to ignore. Maybe Levi said it on purpose, so Eren would know he was taken in this life.

"I'm here on vacation with friends," Eren offers.

"Friends?"

"From college. Nobody you know."

Levi nods. Eren doesn't say it, because it's too harsh, but wonders if Levi feels it too: the world they live in is far too vast to limit himself to the handful of people he sees in faded memories. To distract, he picks a different topic. "Your hair is different." For reasons Eren doesn't care to delve into, his own hair looks the same as it did before.

Levi's response is odd, a mannerism Eren has never seen. He's mildly self-conscious and looks away, runs his fingers through the hair over his neck. "I think sometimes to cut it that way," he says. "Because of fashion now."

It's odd, hearing Levi talk about fashion. Odd, too, seeing him in a t-shirt printed with text in a language Eren doesn't recognize, wearing shorts and sandals and tricked out for vacationing.

"You learn art?" Levi asks, motioning at the museum.

"Criminology," Eren says. "But art is nice. We didn't have any of this stuff." He waves a hand. "Some of it is older than the Walls!" He looks over at Levi, tries to guess, then gives up and asks. "What do you do?"

"Army," Levi says. Eren snorts, making Levi add defensively, "I'm good at it. I can fly airplanes. And no more child-soldiers, also."

The humor drops off his face suddenly, and Eren knows what he's going to say before he speaks.

"It's okay," Eren says.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he repeats. In Levi's eyes he sees the shadow of who he was threatening to overcome who he is, the dull guilt rising to mask his features. "Don't, Levi."

He knows he shouldn't, but he wraps a steadying hand around Levi's wrist. It's still strong, though much less corded than it was, and warm under his fingers. Happily, Levi quiets down.

For a moment they just sit there looking at each other, Eren with his hand still around Levi's wrist, their eyes on each other's faces. Eren wonders what Levi sees in his, if it's their days together or their nights together or their eventual deaths together.

For a moment he considers breaking his own rules. He wants to ask where Levi lives, if they can meet again, what his phone number is and his Facebook… He imagines what it would be like to meet again, properly. Maybe cook something, or go somewhere. He doesn't know what Levi likes in this lifetime, but he's sure he'd like to do it with him.

He opens his mouth to speak.

The words will not come. Because this is why he never contacted anybody, isn't it? There's a freedom in being somebody new, in having every option open and the world at his fingertips. There's so much to learn and experience, so much that wallowing in memories will get in the way of.

For all he knew who Levi was, he doesn't know who Levi _is_. And while he wants to, wants to desperately…

"Are you happy?" he asks instead.

Levi smiles. It's an expression Eren has seen before, but somehow clearer, truer than it has ever been. "Are you?" Levi asks, and Eren smiles back.

Because his friends might not have fought monsters with him, but they are good friends. His mother might not have fueled his revenge by being eaten by a titan, but she's a good mother and loves him. He cannot fly on wires, but he does capoeira. The bonds he has now aren't forged by blood and death, and he likes it that way. It lets him set aside the nightmare of who he was, and find out who he can be.

So they part. It's awkward, because both of them consider kissing but neither will commit, so they trade a half-hug instead. Eren pounds stiffly on Levi's back twice, and Levi gets up on tiptoe so his chin will pass Eren's shoulder. He smells nothing like he did, and yet the scent underlying the soap and cologne is the same.

They reenter the museum and separate. Eren then freezes for a moment, because _is he really going to let Levi go_? Maybe not, maybe---

He turns, but Levi is nowhere to be seen among the museum-goers. Eren does a full circle but there is nothing, nothing but the old paintings and myriads of people looking at them.

He takes a breath, and is surprised to find his regret tinged with relief. He crosses the gallery in search of his friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't often do reincarnation, but I felt like putting a different angle on it from what I usually see.


	4. I sea what you did there

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the war is over, Levi decides he wants to wallow in misplaced guilt. Eren has other ideas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ereri Secret Santa gift for [humanitys-cleverest](http://humanitys-cleverest.tumblr.com/) :)

The day after the victory should have been great. Well, great was relative when you were burning dead all day, and the way people kind of stood around and tried not to smile because _shit lots of people died_ but _we won yay_ would probably not be talked about in later years because it was slightly uncomfortable and perhaps disrespectful, but hey. We Won. They ended up spending the next few days in a kind of seesaw between intense joy and mourning, but freedom beckoned, and Eren for one couldn’t wait to get to the really good parts, mainly the expedition to the sea (somewhere eastward, according to old maps), and having improbably large amounts of sex with Levi.

All these plans screeched to a halt, though, when Levi decided it was time for some messed-up sort of nobility, and told Eren that they had to break up for reasons that had more to do with some weird guilt trip Levi was on, that in Eren’s opinion had little-to-no place in these beautiful days of victory.

“I want you to be free,” Levi said.

“We _are_ free,” Eren replied.

“But I’m an old man,” Levi said.

“That never stopped you before,” Eren replied.

“That was because of the war,” Levi said. “We could have died anytime.”

“So it’s okay to be together when we can die, but not when we can live?” Eren asked.

Then Levi started a sentence with “But you should-” and Eren told him he was being an idiot and Levi didn’t take it very well and an _entire day_ was wasted on sulking. Then Levi came back for another round of convincing Eren that them being together was a terrible thing, which Eren turned into a round of convincing Levi that it was indeed possible for him to orgasm more than three times a night, and whatever Levi’s point had been sort of got lost in all of that. (As well it should be. It was a stupid point.)

It wasn’t that Eren was oblivious. He could see how tired Levi was, some days, and how deeply Levi hurt over the people he’d lost. Half the reason they’d started spending nights together was because the nightmares came less. As far as Eren was concerned, this _worked_. Levi made him want to get up in the morning, and some days that was enough.

Though Eren had his tactless moments (most of his life was tactless moments, according to Levi), he didn’t voice his true opinion that Levi was trying to break up with him because Levi was flooded with survivor’s guilt and was aiming to spend the rest of his life in some dark corner mourning his lost friends. Since Eren knew that what Levi _really_ wanted was to spend the rest of his life with Eren exploring the world and having lots of great sex, Eren took it upon himself to make it happen.

“If this is how you really feel,” he told Levi, “if you really want to leave me,” he hammed it up a bit, and made big sad eyes at Levi, “at least come to the sea with me first. We made a promise, remember?”

“You made a promise with your friends,” Levi said, and tried to look away from the piteousness Eren radiated.

“You promised too!”

“I don’t remember,” Levi said, because he had Humanity’s Strongest Selective Memory.

“It was that night when we went up to the roof with the 3DMG and a whole keg of oil and you wanted me to-“

“Okay fine,” Levi said quickly, glancing around to make sure nobody was listening. Of course, nobody was. People tended to give them a wide berth because they already knew too much about Eren and Levi’s sex lives and didn’t really need to know more. “And it wasn’t a keg.”

“Just come with me to the sea,” Eren pleaded. “If you want to leave, then, I’ll let you.”

He was lying, of course; he would never let Levi leave, but this gave them a few more weeks for Levi to forget about the idea. And the sea would be so beautiful and romantic that Levi would be swept away and never talk about breaking up again.

“Fine,” Levi said. He probably didn’t know that whenever he looked at Eren, he made this sad face that said mostly _don’t leave me alone_ , and that was why Eren kept tackle-hugging him at every opportunity.

\---  
The sea plan was a disaster, Eren realized approximately .02 seconds after arriving. Armin’s books had waxed eloquent about the beautiful beaches, glittering expanse of water, etc. etc., and failed to mention the myriad of things somebody like Levi would find objectionable.

“This is as far as I go,” said Levi at the edge of the sand, looking down on it with horror.

“It’s just sand,” Eren said, tugging fruitlessly on his hand. They were so close! “Look, the water is so pretty-“

“That water is full of sand.”

“It’s totally clean!” Eren said. Levi glowered at him.

“The water is flowing over lots and lots of sand. It’s probably full of it.” And Levi sat down where he was, crossed his arms, and refused to budge.

So Eren ran across the sand, which was soft and white, and with Armin and Mikasa oohed and aahed over the pretty seashells, and danced in the waves, and marveled at the strange sea creatures. If they kept this up long enough Levi would definitely get jealous, Eren thought, but after half an hour he was already rushing back to show Levi discoveries.

“Disgusting,” Levi said about the slimy insides of seashells.

“It’s like a sea cockroach,” he said of crabs.

“I’m sure you deserved it,” he said, when Eren got stung by something white and rubbery that looked like a semitransparent bladder. But he held Eren and ruffled his hair while they waited for his titan powers to heal the nasty rash. Eren kissed him, and Levi leaned into the kiss, then pulled away and spat.

“You taste like fish shit,” he said. But he was smiling.

And then Eren came up with his best plan. He snuggled up to Levi, and pulled Levi’s head onto his chest. Levi, of course, mumbled and grumbled and tried to turn his head so the beginnings of grey at his temples wouldn’t be obvious, but Eren kissed him there and held him tight until he settled. After a few minutes, Levi fell asleep.

That was something they’d never had before, Eren thought. Levi being able to just fall asleep on Eren, no walls in sight. Safe. Even though the grey wouldn’t fade from his hair, already Levi was sleeping better and looking younger by the day, and his sallow skin was picking up a tan.

For about half an hour Eren was content to just sit there with him, holding him close and appreciating that he was alive, and watching the sea glitter before them. But since the purpose of the exercise was to get Levi into the water, eventually he began stealthily shifting around until he managed to get an arm securely around Levi’s chest and the other under Levi’s knees. He shifted to standing in a slow movement that made his thighs and calves scream in protest, but Levi didn’t wake up and that’s what was important. When the sun hit his face Levi turned it into Eren’s chest, making him want to tell everyone again that Humanity’s Strongest was _extremely cute_ , but last time he’d done that Levi had flipped his shit so maybe not now.

He managed to keep Levi asleep until he was ankle-deep in the waves, and then Levi jerked awake, had a brief moment to see what Eren had done and get a roar of protest going, when Eren tripped and sent them both into the surf.

Levi sat there for a minute, furious and half-soaked and utterly beautiful. Eren gave him a hopeful smile.

“It’s fun, see?” he said, and splashed a bit.

“I’ll show you fun,” said Levi and splashed a _lot_ , and Eren found out that seawater in your face was not actually very pleasant.

But it was fun. Even if later Levi couldn’t stop complaining (“ _I told you there was sand in the fucking water!”_ ), and was a little bit sunburned, they retired to their tent that night tired and happy, and well-sated on roasted sea fish. Eren curled up on Levi’s chest to listen to his heartbeat, and Levi’s hands closed about him, strong and protective.

Levi drew a breath to speak. “I should-“

“No,” Eren said. Levi fell silent, and Eren lifted his head to look into his eyes, though it was too dark to see much. “No.”

Levi ran his hands over Eren’s shoulders and one into his hair, then let out a deep sigh, and pulled him back down.

“Okay,” he said.

They found out that night that camping on a beach was a bad idea, when the sea rose up and swept away half the tents and supplies. The next day they ran up and down the beach to try and reclaim whatever could be rescued from the water, and at some point Eren found his hand in Levi’s. When Eren squeezed and made an inquiring noise Levi ignored him, but made no move to let go. His eyes, reflecting the sea, were clearer than they had been in a long time, and Eren thought that perhaps the waves had done a decent job sweeping away his objections as well.


	5. One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren discovers an ability he didn't know he had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I came across this prompt on the kinkmeme which I doubt for the life of me that I'll be able to find again, but the idea bugged me and I couldn't resist writing it.  
> The prompt was for Eren to have a fusing ability a la Steven Universe. If you don't know SU it's okay; basically, Eren can fuse. 
> 
> I feel like this is a little rough and I'm a little rusty, but what the hey. I hope you enjoy!

He sits up, and everything feels utterly wrong, yet at the same time utterly right. He's further from the ground than he should be. He looks down at his hands; they are solid, effective, but unscarred.

He takes a breath and tries to understand what had happened.

Eren had been shy but determined, unsure of his place in the world but sure that he did want to kiss Levi. He had worked hard to convince his captain that he was serious about it. He remembered how he had felt, leaning closer to Levi, absolutely sure in every way imaginable that this was _right_. This was something he would never regret.

Levi had been torn over the fact that he was convinced he _should_ be reluctant, but wasn't. He _should_ leave Eren to find someone else, but didn't want to. He should protect his heart and back away, but couldn't bring himself to. He wanted to fall.

And then they had kissed – he remembered what it was like to kiss Eren, to kiss Levi – and a spark had started up between them asking _are you sure_ and they had answered _yes_ and –

Here he is.

He stands up. Some part of him is terrified, because he is starting to realize that neither Levi nor Eren even exist anymore, but it's a small, far-off sort of terror. It's hard to be afraid when he feels so _right_. It's not that they don't exist, he thinks. They both exist. He can remember Levi's dark childhood, and the thought of it washes memories to the surface. He remembers stealing, remembers running and killing and blood and – he recoils in horror at the intensity of it, and swallows bile at the curling shame of being exposed.

Best leave the memories alone. This new body is more interesting, as is the freshness of the world around him. There is something captivating about the blue of the sky, the shape of trees, the texture of stone under his hands. It's all new. This is better than thinking of the old.

Still, if they split apart again, will Eren remember? What will he think?

The worry is fleeting, because even as he thinks it, he realizes that _he_ is Eren, and he knows with a terrible fierceness that there is nothing Levi could have done that would change his feelings. Not now.

Some of those memories double up at the back of his mind – similar experiences of hunger, of loneliness and misery. No. He won't drown in them. Hands on his knees, breath heavy in his lungs, he forces these memories as well to the back of his mind. He's wasting this new existence of his moping, and it's a fucking shame.

He's moping when he could be _flying_.

For some reason the straps of his gear have survived the transformation, and they lie dark against his white uniform pants. Full gas canisters are strapped to his thighs, and if Shitty Glasses were here she'd probably start theorizing about how Eren's transformation affected fucking _gas canisters_ and his _uniform_ , but both parts of him are more interested in seeing what his new body is capable of. Pragmatics over theory.

He leaps off the wall, releases his grapples. It's effortless. He flips in midair and lets out a whoop – he hadn't known he could do that. Every turn and movement is a discovery. The gear obeys him almost as soon as he thinks it, and every shift of his muscles is perfectly timed.

"Levi!"

He jerks, startled, in a move that would have thrown Eren off, but now just causes a momentary waver. Only when he lands in front of Hange does he consider that it wasn't the best idea.

She takes a step back and draws her swords. "Who are you?"

The question hits him with a stab of pain. _I fought with you I fought for you_ -

"I'm – Levi," he stumbles. "And Eren." And both. And neither.

He realizes that Hange is looking way up at him; he's probably taller than Mike, and the thought makes a grin twitch his mouth.

 _"Oh my Walls HOW!_ " Hange practically shrieks. She sheathes her swords without a second thought, apparently completely convinced. "You _fused_?"

"I," and he blushes, remembering. Hange doesn't seem to care much, but is circling him with obvious glee. The part of him used to being looked at as a specimen calms a rising nervousness within him at the treatment.

"We are going to have to do _so many_ experiments! How do you feel? What is it like? Can you split apart?"

"I feel… good," he says, almost surprising himself. No part of him is used to that, but it's undeniable. He likes this. For the first time in any life, he likes _himself_. "I don't know if I can split." Not that he wants to, at the moment. He has a feeling that has something to do with it.

"I can't wait to see your titan now!" Hange enthuses. "What do I call you? Leveeren?"

"No!" he says, just a bit too sharply. He's not a hybrid. He's… himself. He's… "Sky," he decides, thinking of the limitless possibilities of his existence, of what both parts of him strive for.

Hange snorts, much to his annoyance.

"Shut up, Four-Eyes," he mutters, but _that_ makes her start laughing hysterically. He crosses his arms and glowers.

"Oh my," she gasps, wiping at tears (seriously, not that funny). "You don't even – do you realize that you have _literally four eyes?_ "

"What?" He blinks and realizes that there is a _lot_ more blinking going on than is normal.

 _Shock_ – he feels a tearing, something ruptures – and he's falling and –

Eren sits up where he'd fallen, just a little groggy. He's small in his own skin, weak, now that he's tasted strength. Lonely.

Levi – he looks over to his captain, suddenly afraid. What if Levi is angry? What if Levi hadn't wanted it? Worse, _what if Levi never wants to do it again_?

But then, he remembers what it had felt like, a kind of acceptance beyond anything he'd ever imagined. Levi seems to sense his uncertainty, and the small nod is enough to make Eren heave a sigh of relief.

"This is the best thing that ever happened to me," Hange announces joyfully.

 _You don't even know_ , Eren thinks.

"Yeah, well, not right now," Levi grumbles at her. He hadn't tumbled to the ground, graceful as always, and holds a hand out for Eren to take. "Coming?"

"Where are you going? I need to debrief you two!"

"Go tell Erwin about this," Levi replies. "I need to talk to Eren for a moment."

For a moment Hange looks like she might resist, but the opportunity to be the bearer of such dramatic tidings wins out, and she rushes off. Eren turns to follow Levi, but instead of his customary place a step behind, finds himself next to him.

It feels right.

They walk beside each other for a few minutes in silence. Eren's insides are all twisted up with how much he wants to jump back inside Levi and see what else they can do, or maybe he wants to hold Levi's hand, or-

"Are you alright?" Levi asks.

"Alright?" Eren sputters. "That was the _best_." He grins, and remembers how easily it came to Sky (he thinks now, privately, that the name is sort of cheesy, but it was him and Levi being cheesy together, and he'll defend it to the death). Levi doesn't quite smile, but his expression lightens.

"Have you considered the implications of this?" Levi asks, and Eren's not really sure what he means.

"Implications?" Now he's nervous again. He should have known this was too good to be true.

Levi looks up at him, his brow furrowed in annoyance. "Yes, implications. For example, are we ever going to be able to just kiss?"

(As it happens, the answer is 'no')

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like there are a few more angles that could be explored with this, so idk. Maybe if you guys are interested I'll write another bit, if the mood strikes me ^^


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